POTTSVILLE — The Pottsville Junior High School (PJHS) Quiz Bowl team is preparing to compete in the state tournament after winning the regional tournament.

The group will compete against 19 other teams in the junior high level at the State Quiz Bowl Tournament at Arkadelphia High School on Feb. 22.

Teams from seven area schools competed in the round-robin style regional tournament at Dover High School. The top two teams from each region will move on to the state tournament. In previous years, teams played three matches to determine seeding in the morning, and tournament play was single-elimination in the afternoon.

"My students were surprised that they won because it was a round robin competition," Lisa Jones, PJHS Quiz Bowl coach, said. "We had no idea how many games the other teams were winning and what their scores were. We only knew the score of our games."

Jones said the state competition will be the team's last event of the school year.

"We have been practicing all year long for this tournament," she said. "We practice each week after school and students are studying on their own time."

Jones, the team and Diane Hancock, who travels with the team as a judge, will travel by bus to Arkadelphia on the morning of the tournament. Each team has a coach, a scorekeeper and a judge who serves in matches her team isn't competing in.

Jones said she is proud of her team's hard work.

"The students' willingness to study, practice and listen and play as a team are what makes our team so successful," she said. "I am so proud of my junior high team. They are awesome to work with."